Car sales continue to be one of the few bright spots in the American economy and the October SAAR is looking up. Rolls-Royce is expanding its global footprint with plans to open dealerships in Brazil and Chile next year. Google has set a goal of hitting 1 million miles with its autonomous cars. All that and more, plus a look at how ZF is making it easy for automakers to electrify vehicles.

This is Autoline Daily for October 24, 2011, with news pouring in from all over the world.

STAR-SPANGLED SAAR (subscription required)
We start in the United States. While economic problems continue to dominate the headlines, car sales continue to be one of the few bright spots in the American economy. Ward’s reports that the October SAAR, or seasonally adjusted annual selling rate, could come in at 13.6 million units. That would be up 15 percent over a year ago, mainly thanks to Toyota and Honda getting back to normal levels of production. Ward’s predicts both companies will make significant gains in market share. It says the total market will be down somewhat compared to September, but that normally happens, and the month-over-month decline will be smaller than in the past.

CUTTING THE (MOO SHU) PORK SPENDING
And now to China where there’s bad news for Volkswagen and Audi. The government is about to introduce new regulations that will essentially prohibit government officials from driving foreign-brand cars. Today, VW and Audi dominate that market. Not only is the government banning foreign-brand cars for government officials, it’s limiting what they can buy. Right now they can spend up to $39,000 on a car with a 2.0-liter engine. Going forward they can only spend $28,000 on a car with a maximum of a 1.8-liter engine. It’s all aimed at boosting sales of cars from Chinese companies.

PLATES COST AS MUCH AS A CAR
Speaking of China, the price of a set of license plates in the city of Shanghai has hit an average of almost $8,500. The city issued 9,000 license plates last month, but 19,000 people applied for them. Get this people, that’s nearly a billion dollars a year in license-plate fees, and that’s in just one city!

ROLLERS IN RIO
Now to the southern hemisphere where Rolls-Royce is expanding its global footprint. The super-luxury brand just announced plans to enter South America, marking the first time in history that its cars will officially be available on the continent. The fast-growing markets of Brazil and Chile are its main focus.

LOOK MA, NO HANDS!
Back to the States for a moment, where Google has set a goal of hitting 1 million miles with its autonomous cars. So far they’ve been driving in cities, on country roads, on expressways and have also done all this at night. And they’ve done all this with the cars driving themselves with no human input. Progress marches on.

TANKS FOR THE MEMORIES
And now we end up in North Africa. Libyan rebels won a great victory against Muammar Gaddafi and his oppressive regime. Rag-tag freedom fighters battled government forces with whatever weapons they could scrounge up – or make. The Telegraph reports industrious insurgents constructed a battle tank! This Conestoga wagon-like vehicle is built on top of a bulldozer and features double-thick steel armor reinforced with concrete. Painted in the colors of Libya’s new flag and emblazoned with Arabic script praising God, the armored earth-mover bristles with five machine guns and a tank cannon on top. It was designed to take out sniper positions on rooftops.

Coming up next, some of the technological progress being made on developing electric cars.

Converting vehicles to become electrically powered can be easier than most people might think, especially if all you have to do is convert the rear axle. ZF recently unveiled its latest contribution to the cause. Take a look.

And that wraps up this report on the latest news in the global automotive industry. Thanks for watching, we’ll see you tomorrow.

While Brazil still has a long way to go, it is one of the world’s fastest growing economies. And while Rolls Royce may be ostentatious, there must be room for it or they wouldn’t be entering the market.

tj , I know they had been trying to get NASCAR track built up there ,but the name Landfill 500 didn’t appeal to many people. So what are we talking here a race set up in the parking lot of Giants Stadium?

@9 We’ve seen Baltimore and Singapore put on races, so technically it’s doable(but they may need to put in chicanes around the final resting places of members of the Witness Protection Program, Curva Hoffa?). I wonder how the financing will work: remember Bloomberg telling Bernie that “NY would love to have a race, how much will you pay?”
And the week long PR extravaganza will be as much fun as the track action. We don’t get this side of it, here.

Speed TV is supposed to broadcast a special announcement Tuesday between 12 – 1 pm EST

We’ll see when its made ‘Official ‘

———–

@ pedro

Brazil makes China look like a Summer Holiday in comparison

And its always been this way ( Extreme minority of very wealthy with the vast majority being beyond poverty )

Remember in Brazil ( especially in the Cities ) its considered a National Sport as well as a Service to the Community to terminate Poor Orphan Children . .Of any age ( murdering being the more blunt way of saying this ) Mostly 8 14 year olds

Prejudice ? The ” Shade ” of your skin color there can keep you in poverty , or boost you into the middle class .

Tj did you read the TTAC piece on the lofty 40mpg claims by some OEM’s seems more like a case of wishful thinking, they should have a small sidebar on those 40mpg figures: “If you can get 40 mpg, please check your pulse”

On the New Jersey Grand Prix: I hope it’s better than the street race they used to run with Indy cars; talk about a snooze (no room for passing, heck, almost no room to race). I’d like to know where they plan to route this race as well; (born and raised in N.J.), the pot holes could swallow those high speed ‘go-carts’. I hoping for the best (but don’t have much confidence in having a good race).

And a comment on yesterday’s Talledega race: why did they even bother; 175 laps of so-what lead changes, and just when they might have a race for the last ten laps, cautions and a one lap sprint. Hours of boredom and five (okay maybe 10 seconds) for the last lap pass.

#22,
I’ve had tanks of over 40 mpg with my MINI which has a highway rating of 37, but it is for tanks where most of the driving is at 50-55 mpg with only a few miles of driving with stops, and no high speed.

Yeah, most people are not going to get 40 with these cars with 40 mpg highway ratings, but it is certainly possible. The car companies need to quit advertising on the basis of the highway rating, or they need to put a caveat in the ads, like they do with the prescription drug ads.

I hear the town of Weehawken NJ being named as a possible place for the F1 race. For those of you not familiar with it, Weehawken is hard by the helix, near the fishes, but with a killer view of The City.

I’ve had tanks at over 40 in my Supercharged Cobalt SS that was only rated at 32 – part of the reason was that it needed a new fuel filter it can be done in about any 30+ mpg car so it’s not really a big deal. Not to get into a back and forth on mpg numbers but everyone knows this is a government run (as in easy to fool) test that EVERY (as in EVERY) manufacture cheats using shift points and fuel management. The only common is the test and it states right on the sticker that “YOUR MILEAGE WILL VARY!!!!!”

Probably , as far as the F1 race was concerned , the same reasons I hated Indy so much ;

1) Almost zero transportation to and from the track
2) Almost zero Trackside Hotels/Motels etc
3) No support from the City of Indianapolis ( go see the CDN GP and see how all of Montreal comes out for the week long party as a comparison
4) Customer service for buying tickets etc was abysmal and all but non existent
5) Indianapolis is sourly missing any reasonable Cultural Base for after hours entertainment
6) The Indy Chamber of Commerce did next to nothing
7) The Indy Tourism Board did even less ( one call to the Montreal Tourism Board gets you Air Travel , Hotel and Tickets package , Special perks including meal discounts etc and insider info to Meet & Greets etc )
8) Downtown Indy is too far from the track and again zero ground transport . You drive or you don’t go !
9) The track was a Joke ( F1 fans worldwide called it the worst track in F1 and a Fish Bowl )
10) The tracks facilities are well below par for what is expected from F1 fans
11) Indy is not a World View kind of town
12) Well do we really need a # 12 ?

Sum up

Went twice
Got PO’d both times
Never went again
Spent my F1 money in Montreal instead

@30 If they had built out the track to go onto the golf course, and got some elevation changes, it could have been quite an event. I liked the nickname for those two tight turns before the cars got on the oval, Mickey and Minnie.

A race across the river from Manhattan will also have the marketing advantage of being able to lure(pay) celebs to associate themselves with race. I think I’m looking at the NY/NJ race as a marketing exercise, mostly.

#30,
I get the impression you don’t like Indianapolis. Yeah, the track is not great, but the city is easy to get around in using the rental car you probably got a the airport. Yes, the hotels are downtown, not next to the track. Where are the hotels for the Austin race, or Watkin’s Glen where they used to have F1 races? Maybe I should go to Montreal. I know the city is fun, but I didn’t realize there were a bunch of hotels next to the race circuit.

I had not trouble getting tickets. They were cheap, and I got them easily with a short phone call.

OK, I’m a “regular person,” not an AA with presumed special priviledges like “meet and greet” you mention in #7, so maybe that is why I liked Indy OK.

For those not familiar, downtown Indianapolis is about 6 miles from the track, and the Indianapolis airport is 13 miles from the track.

@35 Moving people to the track will be aided by the PATH trains to nearby Hoboken, and Port Imperial(shuttle boats that dock exactly along the river where the race could be). Only crazy people would drive to this race, and Bernie can just take a helo to Teterboro, being wheels up before the red lights go out.

Sorry if the post came across that way , but I haven’t got a thing against Indy as a City , just as a host for an F1 race . For the Indy 500 and NASCAR … no problem .

Honestly it’d be just a big if not bigger failure if they brought F1 to Kansas City . Lets face it Kit . These Mid West Cities are mighty fine places to live etc but other than family , friends or an event there isn’t much of a draw for the International community to want to come here .

As far a me being A List , thats not the case Kit . That’s just the level of customer service you get from Montreal .From basic hotel/ticket to Sofitel Suite and Grand Stand they cover all the bases with a single call , even giving you your own concierge ( Montreal Tourism ; the F1 race advisor )

My first year of buying Indy F1 tickets they refused ( this was written up in AW so not a one off ) to guarantee that the tickets I was buying were the tickets I’d receive . And they were not !!! Got bumped when I arrived for some press dodo

Both years , no one at Indy was willing to help with Hotels , transportation , flights etc . Heck they wouldn’t even make a suggestion !!!!!!

So no Kit Indy the city is just fine by me . Indy the F1 race was another story

According to my sources , the City of NY …… and the State of NJ … if this can be believed …… will be cooperating on the NJ F1 race , with NJ having the space for the race and NYC having the infrastructure .

IF…….. this is true it’ll be a Historic Precedent . The two ‘ Rivals ‘ cooperating to create a mutually successful event .

This’n I gotta see ( assuming it happens )

e.g I’ll be there with bells on if it does

( I likes Austin well enough but family is family , they’re all in NJ , aint see’d them fer a bit , an well ……. families got a few connections here and there .. SOoooooo ….. We’ll be seeing you HtG . If we can arrange it )

I’ll be the one in the tifosi outfit, tj. If the Meadowlands can host a superbowl, with shuttle buses from hospitalty venues in Manhattan, then this F1 could happen. It’s just that Christie doesn’t seem like the kind of governor to put state money behind it. He killed a freight tunnel project not long ago.

One year a friend from the FOC NA tried to get me to go on the Members trip to Montreal at some four times the going rate . For that he got a couple of Meet and Greet events ( with about 400 other folks ) etc

I on the other hand , stuck with my new found friend at Tourism Montreal . Got everything from Hotel to tickets to flights discounted .

And………. thanks to _______ , and very very lucky circumstances… got to have Martini’s with Ross Brawn and one of the Ferrari Team engineers ( this was a bit ago ) for the entire evening , discussing Fly Fishing in VT .

You’ll never guess who showed up at my doorstep in VT awhile later with Fly Rod in hand .

Hyundai seems to be getting a lot of mileage out of these 40mpg claims for most of their cars, the funny thing is that TTAC reports that among the auto media who got to test out the cars that supposedly get 40 mpg, the much maligned and criticized Civic got the best numbers at real world speeds, not the geriatric speed that you need to do to get those 40 mpg numbers

We’ll see how the Super Bowl goes over at Indianapolis. It’s certainly a different crowd from F1 folks, but also, the arena is downtown, where many of the hotels and some entertainment venues are located.

Sad to say, I’m sure the tourism people will be more accommodating to the Super Bowl crowd than they were for the F1 people.

I didn’t find Indy much if any more difficult to get to than Montreal on race day.

The Montreal track being on an island, there aren’t many ways to get there. It has been a few years, but if I recall I had to take a subway somewhere to get on a bus to get across the bridge to St Helens and then walk across to Notre Dame and to our seats on the front straight. A good few miles, I’d say.

In Indy I just took the IndyGo bus that dropped me a few blocks from the track. On race day there are bus-only lanes, so it rarely stopped and not much of a wait to board coming or going.

The biggest difference was the cost. Montreal cost me much more, and that was with a more favorable exchange rate than it is now…and the a-hole French Canadians that seemed to go out of their way to be rude to us at every opportunity.

You should of booked the race thru Montreal Tourism to get the discounts and goodies . Thats where you got the extra cost as I’ve always paid less to go to Montreal than Indy .

You should of asked for directions as well because …

……. as far as getting there , come on , you have ZERO need of a car when going to Montreal , the subway dumps you right at the entrance of the track , with several points in the city to get there ) and the whole damned city is F1 Crazy for the entire week . If you took a bus etc you did it the very hard way !

Anyway my point was the Customer Service at Indy ( where there was none ) vs Customer service at the Canadian Grand Prix

As far as the way you were treated , not knowing you personally I couldn’t say for sure , but it sounds like you’ve got a bit of the Dirty American Tourist attitude hanging around

Other than the Quebecois attitude about their language ( they even give French citizens crap about that ) I’ve found them to be nothing but fun , enjoyable and joyful folks to be around and the City sure has its Customer Service down pat .

I’d say your experiences in Montreal had more to do with your lack of experience / knowledge of the race /area than the race itself

Whereas I’d been to Indy before ( for the 500 ) and couldn’t believe the difference in customer service between the 500 and the F1 race

ZL1. It appears that striving for good times on the Nordschleife has forced some less than street immune compromises onto cars. Wasn’t Mark Reuss just on Leno with the ZL1 that was going around the Ring? I also recall Bob Lutz, IHB, describing how certain in house GM quality standards needed to be retired, in the interest of making compelling products. This and the blindspots problem, seem to be where you don’t like Lutz’ choices, tj. (but I do like those Allstate ads)

I do not object to China’s ban of foreign-brand cars for gov’t use and think this may be a good idea for us to follow,as well. But then,I question, should the allowable brands only be GM and Ford products,or should Chry. products still be included. Yet to include them,an Italian brand,would give favoritism over all the other brands now assembled in the US. I have no problem having all US vehicles being a Ford or GM product,but what do all of you think?

1) Blind spots
2) His endorsement of the VOLT and E/V’s in general
3) His blatant selling off his services of late to any Tom , Dick and Harry that’ll pay the required sum , Quality and Reputation be damned

You know if Steve Jobs had pulled half the crap the likes of Lutz , Fisker , Musk , etc have in this Country we’d of had his head on the chopping block

But from Auto Execs ?

Oh well then . They’re beyond reproach and can do no wrong . As they strip manufacturing right out from under our noses , rip us off blind , sell us a bill of goods they wouldn’t GIVE to their worst enemy etc

@tj
Does this mean you are OK with only Ford and GM?
On the “green” segment of MW,they have highlighted an array of foreign green vehicles used by various communities around the country. Reguardless of the fact if any of these vehicles were purchased or donated,should they be accepted?

Here is a question to test ones sense of compassion and moral values. The nightly news reported on debris,from the Japan sunami, floating in the ocean TWICE the size of Texas. Everything from wood to refridgerators. Question?: Since it has been demanded of the oil companies to clean-up their spills,should it also be expected that Japan clean-up the mess from their catastrophy? Agree and it’s akin to kicking someone in the nads when they are already incapacitated. Disagree and you are paying to clean-up anothers mess. Anyone willing to show their true colors?

@63 Act of God. The Japanese have been practicing world class earthquake preparations(nuclear plant regulation being the glaring failure). Should they be forced to clean up the dreck? There’s been lots of stuff out there already which marine creatures choke on. The cost/benefit for me is a no brainer on the big chunky stuff. The pollution of the ocean with radioactive releases from Fukushima, well they are already compensating the fishermen.

Right or wrong, car companies get attention from the government because because they traditionally, and even currently produce many more jobs than Apple or any other tech company. Even Chrysler has more US employees than any tech company, and probably more supplier-related jobs than any tech company.

tj, I don’t believe I said anything about needing a car in Montreal. We didn’t have one.

I’m sure you are right about Montreal Tourism. We were not aware of that and used a travel agency.

As far as getting directions, the route we took was directions we were given, though considering the treatment we got from the locals, it may have been a joke played on us.

Regarding the Ugly American comment, quite the opposite, actually. I am a very quiet person by nature, respectful of other cultures, deferential on their turf, and always polite to everyone. But in Montreal, regardless of how polite I was to the locals, as soon as they heard me speak, their attitude soured. I’ve spoken to many other people with the same experience, so mine is not a unique experience, and I’ve never experienced that in any other country.

I think the first impression is that this is a torsion beam straight axle. I don’t believe so. I think it’s independent, like the rear axle on a Renault Alliance, but with struts instead of torsion bar springs). (I can’t tell if it’s leading or trailing arm, but I’m guessing we were looking at the back of it)

With the electric motors moved off the centerline of the hub and towards the pivot point, it does effectively remove some unsprung weight. I don’t have the math handy to calculate how much, but there should be some net effect in reducing the unsprung weight beneficially.

It reminds me of the genius idea of, instead of electrifying a perfectly good bicycle, somebody built a single-wheel trailer that comprised the battery pack and the hub-motor. With a simple, clever hitch to manage the thrust vector safely, he had the best of both worlds.